There were times where he played on just one or two hours sleep. He admitted that it got to the point where he was like a “zombie” and it made him sluggish on the ice.

It wasn’t until just before Christmas that Boyle finally reached out to the Sharks for help. They got him to talk with the Stanford Center for Sleep Sciences and Medicine and that’s proven to be a big help.

At this point Boyle feels the issue is behind him, which is why he’s comfortable sharing it with the public. But it does stand up both as an example of the lingering problems that can arise from head injuries and what some will put themselves through for the sake of being in the lineup.